Question

How do you change u-joint on front drive line on 2003 all wheel drive Toyota Highlander. Pressed in? No snap rings

I have a 2003 Toyota Highlander all wheel drive. The rear u-joint on the front drive line has a small amount of play. No big deal to change except the u-joint seems to be pressed in there are no keeper snap rings that I can see.

Called Toyota dealer and they said they had never changed one and didn't even have a labor rate for it. Any help would be appreciated.

1. Remove front driveshaft with 14mm box wrenches. Two flanges- front diff and transfer case output shaft2. Put on bench and removed all snap rings with pliers3. Using a large socket pound the bearings out4. Then use a vise grips to remove the caps5. Reinstall is the exact opposite. Tap them in with a hammer6. When they provide resistance just use a touch of grease so that the bearing caps slide in better.

There are two, basic, types of universal joints, not surprisingly called Type A and Type B. The only real difference is the clips used to retain the bearing cups; otherwise the replacement procedure is the same.

Type A has a C-Clip that sits in a groove inside the yoke to hold the bearing caps in place. These are removed by using a small tip punch or chisel to pop the C-Clips out.

Type B has a Spicer Snap Ring that sits in a groove outside the yoke to hold the beraing caps in place. These are removed by using a pair of pliers to squeeze the e-clip together and pull it out. Most times you will need to tap the bearing cap in somewhat to make removing the Spicer Snap Ring easier.

If you don't see clips on the outside of the u joint yoke, you have a Type A universal joint.

i appreciate your response karjunkie but ihave changed literally 100's of u-joints from pto shafts steering shafts drivelines on everything from lawn tractors to semi-trucks and you are right about the usuall 2 kinds of joints the problem is that these are neiher and im wondering if toyota did the same as chevy did for awhile on their s10 around 2000 i think and am trying to find out if anyone has first hand knowledge of such toyota has not been much help

OK, never heard of a u-joint without clips. You may want to post this question directly in the Edmunds car forums for the Toyota Highlander. I find it surprising since I recently helped a friend change the front drive shaft u joints on a late model Toyota Titan and it had C clips in it. Good luck!